


A Silver Chain

by DubiousWriting



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: (it's literally only two sentences), Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, F/F, First Kiss, First Time, Friends to Lovers, Love Confessions, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Minor Jessika Pava/Rey, No Spoilers, and Rey is my ace lesbian daughter, because i hate Kyle Ron with a passion, drunk marriage proposal, no TLJ spoilers, ok i'll stop now, they love each other a lot guys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-19
Updated: 2017-12-19
Packaged: 2019-02-17 04:11:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13068855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DubiousWriting/pseuds/DubiousWriting
Summary: The next morning, Finn would’ve thought the night before was just a wishful dream if not for the weight of a chain around his neck.





	A Silver Chain

**Author's Note:**

> Poe proposing to Finn with his mother's ring is in no way an original idea. The concept just inspired me enough to finally write something after, like, two years. And I know we didn't see Poe wearing it in TFA, but let's just pretend he was.  
> -  
> No spoilers! This doesn't reveal anything to The Last Jedi (which I actually really liked, thankyouverymuch). I did next to no research and I probably took some liberties, but who cares, they're cute and this is fluffy with no pain.  
> -  
> Also not beta read, so comment if you find any mistakes (I really hope you don't though because that's embarassing). Enjoy!

The first time Finn sees it, he’s just come out of a coma. His body aches, his spine feels like it’s on fire, and everything is entirely too bright. It takes some working to pull his lips from each other and he has to blink his eyes over and over for what feels like an hour before he can see anything. When he looks down at himself, he sees he’s covered in what looks like white bubble wrap and there are so many wires he feels almost like a puppet. Finn blinks some more before glancing around the room. Everything he sees is white or light grey before his eyes land on a splash of color: Poe.

Poe’s there, slumped over in a chair next to Finn’s, his hair a mess and his mouth wide open with quiet snores. And there, in his mouth and caught on his lip, is a silver chain. Poe must have been chewing on it when he fell asleep. Finn doesn’t have a word for how Poe looks right now but _endearing_ is probably pretty close.

Finn tries to say something except nothing but a painful rasp comes out. His throat feels like he swallowed some nails and it’s really hard to move his tongue. Finn tries to reach out to Poe but his hand is restricted by all the wires monitoring his condition. It’s all so much work to try and get Poe’s attention and Finn is still so very tired.

Before he knows it, Finn’s eyes are sliding shut again before he can stop it. Finn hopes Poe will be there still when he wakes again.

-

The next time is two weeks later when Finn can sit up in bed himself without any help, _no seriously Poe, it’s fine, I don’t need another pillow._ When Finn woke up again after that first time, Poe had still been there, but that time he’d been awake and smiling so bright Finn thought the lights had been dimmed.

It’s sometime between midday and evening, Finn sitting up in bed with a bowl of something along the lines of jello in his hands. First Order Stormtroopers were only ever fed a strict regimen of nutritional milkshakes so Poe took it upon himself to sneak Finn a piece of all the different kinds of food produced by the mess hall. They try to hide it from Kalonia but that woman knows about everything that goes on in her makeshift hospital.

While Finn ate, Poe was trying to teach him the rules of Sabacc because, once again, the First Order was an entity completely devoid of any kind of fun or happiness. Poe laid out the different kinds of cards in front of Finn on the bed as he explained the meaning of each one. Finn nodded along attentively, glancing up every little while to watch Poe’s face as he talked. Poe always got incredibly excited to show Finn new things.

“Now, these cards are special. When they have this symbol on them,” Poe said, holding up a card to show Finn what he was talking about, “it means they can either add to your overall number or be used to decrease it. Because you can’t go over a certain number, remember?” Finn nodded as he ate another spoonful of jello because was actually interested in learning the rules of this game.

As Poe leaned over to grab another few cards, his shirt shifted and a bit of his collar was expose, as well as a familiar silver chain. It gleamed in the light of the room, a bright glint on Poe’s tan skin. It rested in the hollow of Poe’s collarbone and appeared worn down, as if it was usually worn for long amounts of time. Finn’s eyes traced its length to where it disappeared further down Poe’s chest and up where it wrapped around his neck. Finn wondered what it held, if anything, and why Poe wore it.

But then Poe turned his face back to Finn and Finn moved his eyes back to his bowl. His jello was almost gone. Maybe he could ask Poe to bring him some more next time.

-

The third and fourth and fifth and so on times were all by accident. Over the coming weeks, Finn was deemed strong enough to stand and then to learn how to walk again with the help of Kalonia, Poe, and the handrails attached to the walls of his room. Poe leant himself as Finn’s crutch whenever he had any free time, even if it was just a few minutes. During each visit, Poe’s shirt would move and his necklace would be exposed for anyone who wanted to see. Usually Finn saw it when he was hunched over trying to make his legs move, holding on to both a handrail and Poe’s arm. With his head bent over, Finn could glance over and see it whenever he wanted. Each time made Finn more and more curious as to why Poe wore it.

But then his leg would shift the wrong way or his back would twinge and there were more immediate matters to worry about, like making it to the other side of the room without needing a break. Again.

-

It was two months later when Finn finally remembered to ask what the necklace meant. At this point Finn could walk mostly on his own so long as someone else was there in case of an emergency. They were seated side by side in the mess hall, eating a late lunch after Poe had gotten back from a mission. Poe was still half in his flight suit and Finn wore his jacket-that-was-once-Poe’s.

Poe was alternating between waving his arms around trying to tell a story and shoving obscene amounts of food in his mouth. Finn could hardly understand a word Poe was saying, but Poe seemed so happy and excited to be telling his story that Finn couldn’t help smiling and nodding along anyways. When Poe finally calmed down enough to eat his food like a decent person, Finn glanced down to see his necklace out, as always.

“Hey, Poe?” Poe glanced over and raised his eyebrows. “Why do you wear that necklace? I see it on you all the time and I’ve always wondered what was on it.”

Poe reached down to pull the chain out from under his shirt and held it up for Finn to see. Hanging at the end of it was a ring, a simple band that was probably for a woman, judging by the size. It was silver, like the chain it was on, and slightly scuffed like it had once been worn on a hand. There was nothing really special about it; no gems or engravings or any indications that it was more than just a cheap trinket.

“It’s my mother’s wedding ring. She gave it to me, before she died. Told me I should hold on to it just in case I needed it.” Poe was looking at the ring too, a little wistfully like he was remembering the moment he was describing. “She told me one day I’d give it to someone, just like my father gave it to her.” Finn looked away from the ring to Poe’s face to see a small smile on the other man’s face.

“But I thought wedding rings were supposed to be really big and covered in lots of gems?”

Poe laughed. “I think if my father had proposed with a ring like that, my mother would’ve thrown it right back at him. Mom didn’t care for big sparkly things; they were in the middle of a war so anything that could be considered unnecessary needed to be small and easily packed in a rush. It was really just like how it is now. No one had any extra money to spend on anything that wasn’t vital to the fight.”

Poe hadn’t looked away from the ring as he talked but Finn couldn’t pull his eyes from Poe’s face.  
He spoke of his mother with so much love and affection, more than Finn had ever known in his life before the Resistance.

“She must’ve really loved you.” Finn spoke quietly, like he could disturb the feeling of nostalgia that had settled around them with just his voice.

Poe looked at him then and smiled wider, and maybe a bit happier. “She did. And I loved her too.”

-

Months went by and the war continued, the First Order just as desperate to win as the Resistance. Poe continued to go on missions that Finn became more and more anxious about. Rey had finally returned with Luke Skywalker; Rey said it took so long because Luke was just as stubborn as his sister. Finn had finally been discharged from the medical win after he passed a physical almost as exerting as the ones he went through as a Stormtrooper. Leia seemed convince that the end of the war was in sight, and was squeezing every bit of insider Intel about the First Order out of Finn as she could get.

While the base usually had an air of constant urgency, tonight was an exception. No one really knew why there was a party going on; everyone Finn asked had a different answer: we destroyed a First Order base, it’s one of the Admiral’s birthday, there hadn’t been any deaths this month. No one seemed to really care as long as the booze kept getting passed around and the food was at least mostly edible.

It was late into the night when Finn felt more than saw Poe’s ring. Finn had seen it in passing countless times since learning why Poe wore it. Finn didn’t even notice it anymore unless it was missing from Poe’s neck, which was rare.

Finn was probably just a little more than tipsy, his body not having any sort of tolerance against the shots of Keela and Ice Blasters being shoved into his hands by Poe’s pilot friends, who were Finn’s pilot friends too according to Poe. Finn was slumped against a wall next to Poe, who was laughing at Jess trying to seduce Rey. Finn was laughing too because despite the Scary Jedi face Rey had on right now, Finn knew she was just as into Jess as Jess was into her.

“Pava has more balls than the entire squad combined. I don’t think I could hit on a Jedi, even if they weren’t making that face at me.” Poe giggled into his drink again as Jess brushed Rey’s arm and batted her eyelashes.

“Rey’s a softie, don’t worry. She likes Jess a lot, we’ll probably find them passed out together later.” Finn shifted so he was leaning into Poe’s side. “She’s just acting like she doesn’t like it because she doesn’t want her first kiss to be in public.”

Poe glanced down at Finn’s face and smiled. “You sure you should’ve told me that, buddy?”

“They’ll be making out pretty soon so it’s ok.” Finn shrugged with the shoulder that wasn’t pushed up against Poe and glanced up at the other man. “You know, I haven’t had my first kiss either.”

Poe’s smile got smaller but was even fonder when he replied, “Oh really? You never had any secret rendezvous with other Stormtroopers in dark corners?”

“Nah. We never had any free time, it was always missions, chores, or training.” Finn glanced down at Poe’s mouth quick enough Poe barely caught it.

“Well that’s a shame, kissing is very nice.” Poe wet his lips and Finn glanced down again. “You should find out. As soon as possible.”

Finn straightened up off the wall and turned so he was facing Poe. “Yes commander, I’ll get right on that.” He said as he started leaning in closer.

Poe turned so he was facing Finn too and brought a hand up to Finn’s waist. “You don’t mind your first kiss being in public?” But before Finn could give an answer, Poe leant in the rest of the way. Their lips were a little dry and at first it was just pressing each other’s mouths together. But then Poe cupped the back of Finn’s head with his free hand to direct him into a second kiss. By their third, Finn had one hand on Poe’s jaw and the other clutching Poe’s shirt right over the ring resting against his chest. Poe opened his mouth for their fourth and fifth, and after that they both lost count. They lost themselves in each other, secluded away in a bubble of the creation, separate from the party going on around them.

-

The first time Finn touches the ring for himself without any barrier is later that night, when he leans up to bite it where it’s hanging down from Poe’s neck as Poe moves against him. The second time is later, after they’re both blissed out from pleasure, Poe on his back with his arms around Finn as Finn curls into Poe’s chest, his hand clutching the chain as he drifts off the sleep.

-

It becomes a ritual after that, for Finn to fall asleep clutching at the ring as the two men hold each other on the nights they’re together. On the nights they’re not, on the nights when Poe is gone because there’s still a fight going on no matter how happy they are together. On those nights, Finn can hardly sleep at all because he has no Poe, no chain to grasp as he drifts off, nothing to assure him that Poe is alive and safe. On those nights, Finn can do nothing but bury his face in a pillow from Poe’s side of the bed and breathe in his scent.

-

Over a year goes by, almost two, before Poe takes the chain off in front of Finn. It’s been a long time since Finn first touched it, even longer since he first saw it. They’ve been through a lot: through love and pain and fear and maybe a near death experience or three. But they’re still here at the end of the war, finally, when Hux is captured and Phasma is dead, and Kylo’s ties to the Force are weakened. When there is no more immediate fear of death and the galaxy is finally free again, when the First Order is finally no more.

They’re still here at the most enthusiastic and chaotic celebration either of them have ever been to. The entirety of the Resistance is outside in the night air to watch the fireworks that go off every so often, to drink and dance and laugh with no thought to the hangovers in the morning. Because there is no more fighting to be done and for the first time in a really long time they don’t have to hold back right now.

Everyone is at least a little bit drunk and quite a number of people are making out in alcoves, including Rey and Jessika who had their first kiss that night too. Finn and Poe are seated at one of the tables that was dragged out of the mess hall for this occasion, having just finished a series of shots with Snap and Iolo. They’re both more than a little drunk, leaning into each other and sharing kisses every few minutes while they watch the party around them.

Poe shifts out from under Finn’s arm suddenly, causing the other man to sway suddenly and let out a squawk of annoyance. “I was comfortable,” Finn slurred his words but was quickly shushed by a very urgent looking Poe.

“You know I love you, right? Like, I love you a lot, more than I’ve ever loved anyone.” When Finn nodded that yes he did know this because _I love you just as much asshole,_ Poe went on. “Okay, that’s good. Because you should know that. You’re very lovable and kind and such a good person. And I’m really glad you saved me on the _Finalizer_ because I don’t think I could’ve dealt with not knowing you, not having you in my life. Because I love you, so much, and the war is over now so we can do whatever we want with the rest of our lives.”

Poe stopped for a breather and scrubbed his hand over his face in frustration because he wasn’t getting this out quick enough. “I have absolutely no idea what I want to do with the rest of my life because honestly I didn’t think I’d live long enough to see the end of the war. I have no idea what kind of job I’ll get or what planet I’ll go to or anything. But I do know that I don’t want to do any of it without you. You’re the one thing I know that I want in my life right. And I know that I’m always going to want you, in every sense of the phrase. I want to be with you, forever.”

Finn was sure this would be an incredibly sweet and romantic speech to hear when sober, but Poe was kind of slurring his words and Finn had to focus really hard to understand everything being said. He was still trying to understand the last bit of Poe’s monologue when Poe reached up behind his neck to fumble with the clasp of his necklace. It took him a few times to unhook it with his fumbling drunk fingers which just made Finn giggle, in turn making Poe smile wide.

When Poe finally managed to get his necklace off, he dropped it into his hand and held it out to Finn. “I’d offer you just the ring but I’m pretty sure it’s too small for your fingers.” Poe said the next words clearly and Finn heard them perfectly. “So, will you marry me?”

-

The next morning, Finn would’ve thought the night before was just a wishful dream if not for the weight of a chain around his neck.

**Author's Note:**

> I thought about adding in a quick scene where Finn passed on the ring to his and Poe's child but that would've involved me writing Finn living longer than Poe and I just didn't want to do that. So imagine that that happens decades in the future.  
> -  
> I hope you guys really liked it! Comments and Kudos sustain my life force, thanks. Okay, see you in another two years.  
> -  
> Edit: Thank you all so much for the kudos and all the nice comments! When I checked on this fic after posting it, it was more than I could've hoped for in such a short time. And also, if you'd like to ask for anything specific to be included in a wedding fic, feel free to comment!


End file.
